Dolgeville village board petitioned to enforce snowmobile ordinances

Tuesday

Mar 25, 2008 at 12:01 AMMar 25, 2008 at 11:19 AM

Snowmobile season may be at an end, but a group of Dolgeville residents is looking forward to next winter, as they presented the board of trustees a petition of 50 signatures asking that the police enforce the ordinances that govern the use of the recreational vehicles.

Rob Juteau

Snowmobile season may be at an end, but a group of Dolgeville residents is looking forward to next winter, as they presented the board of trustees a petition of 50 signatures asking that the police enforce the ordinances that govern the use of the recreational vehicles.

“I know the season is winding down, but we are looking to start this year to make next year more manageable,” said Barbara Boucher, who presented the petition to the board. “We feel that there has been a lack of police enforcement when it comes to people riding on the sidewalks and riding at night. We are asking for a little more active participation by the police department. These problems need to be dealt with.”

In addition to police enforcement, Boucher suggested that the ordinances be printed in The Evening Times at intervals throughout the season.

“There are too many people riding on the sidewalks,” said Boucher. “It’s not safe. The situation is a serious accident waiting to happen.”

Boucher asked that the police establish checkpoints at locations throughout the village.
“Residents call 911 now about snowmobiles on the sidewalks, however, by the time the call goes from 911 to the police department that rider is long gone,” said Mayor Bruce Lyon. “It’s hard because of the time involved. Our police officers can be anywhere in the village in two to three minutes, but that is not fast enough to catch someone riding on a snowmobile on a sidewalk. It’s a difficult situation.”

Lyon said he would approach the Salisbury Ridgerunners about speaking to the members at a meeting, and about posting a sign listing the village ordinances at their clubhouse. “Most of the people who ride snowmobiles in the village are members of the Salisbury Ridgerunners, or stop at the Ridgerunners clubhouse, so I will talk to them and warn them not to ride their snowmobiles on our village sidewalks.”

“We need to get our officers out of the office and on the streets,” said Boucher. “We are not asking for our police department to focus all of their time on this matter, but there is no reason why an officer in a car could not set up a checkpoint for 40 to 45 minutes on a Saturday morning. We know where these riders go, we know where they ride, and issuing tickets at the start of the season would send a message. If we nipped this in the bud at the start of the season I’m sure it would make a difference. We need to be proactive rather than reactive.”

“The problem with establishing checkpoints is that the riders will know where the police are and will avoid that area until they are gone,” said Trustee Robert Griffin. “It’s hard to catch them, unless you know who the rider is and can file a written complaint against them.”

Lyon said he would ask Police Chief Howard Lanphier to speak to Boucher and the group of residents who signed the petition.